Why the report was produced

Former Mayor Megan Barry reached out to the Policing Project in 2017 after incidents that drew attention to the way Nashville police officers interact with people of color.

In October 2016, the nonprofit Gideon's Army released its "Driving While Black" report, which said an analysis of 2 million city traffic stops suggested severe and institutional racial discrimination on the force.

Then, in February 2017, a white officer shot and killed Jocques Clemmons, who was black, as he ran from a traffic stop.

Policing Project said community members were 'appalled'

"First, the frustration in minority communities — well beyond individuals discussed in the Gideon’s Army report — was acute," the report read. "And second, there were many in the white community who were largely unaware of this, and were quite concerned at the stories they were hearing from their fellow residents from communities of color. As one prominent Nashvillian said quite emphatically, he had been 'ignorant' and was 'appalled.' "

What the data analysis found

Nashville police have long used traffic stops as a key tactic to increase visibility and prevent crime. At its height, in 2012, the department conducted about 450,000 stops — that number has gone down since.

The Policing Project's data analysis found that black drivers in Nashville are stopped at a 44 percent higher rate than white drivers. Police say the disparity exists because they deploy officers to high-crime areas, often neighborhoods where many people of color live.

But the report found that "even controlling for crime, unexplained racial disparity still remains."

And there was no evidence the stops did anything to prevent crime.

The department's "practice of making large numbers of stops in high crime neighborhoods does not appear to have any effect on crime," the report read. "If (the) primary concern is crime reduction, (police) could reduce the number of equipment and registration stops, and direct officer resources to more productive strategies that could potentially lead to greater reductions in crime."

The report obliquely suggested that while the current police department leadership was willing to consider new strategies, it might not be equipped to do so.

"Because traffic stops have been a core MNPD strategy for so long, there is not necessarily the expertise or knowledge base within the department to transition to new strategies," the report read. "Throughout our conversations with MNPD, officials have been willing to consider alternatives, but are not certain what those alternatives are."

The authors also questioned the feasibility of systemic change given the department's precinct-based structure, which gives the leaders of the city's eight precincts power to move forward with their own strategies as they see fit.

"The amount of such discretion in Nashville is uncommon in our experience and may hinder system-wide change," the report read.

Chief pledges to 'refocus' on new strategies

Police Chief Steve Anderson did not challenge the fact that black drivers have been stopped at a higher rate.

"Weekly data-driven analyses inform our eight precinct commanders where and when crime is occurring, along with where and when citizens are calling for MNPD assistance," he said in a statement. "So long as crime victimizes citizens and families in some of our city’s most vulnerable areas — communities most often in transition and impacted by gentrification, housing issues or lack of economic development — the police will necessarily be staffed in these areas with the primary goal of reducing victimization."

Anderson said he appreciated that researchers found traffic stops, particularly those for non-moving violations like expired tags, "do not appear to be having a significant impact on short-term or long-term crime trends."

He said the department would "refocus and rededicate ourselves to strengthening community partnerships and engaging neighborhood residents in public safety initiatives that do not make vehicle stops a priority."

Police union defends officers, blasts traffic stops

In a statement, the Nashville chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police focused on the fact that the report's authors said the evidence of racial disparities "is not necessarily evidence of discrimination."

"The Fraternal Order of Police has, for years, expressed its concerns regarding the level of focus placed on traffic stops within the MNPD," the statement read. "In May of 2018, we delivered a survey to Mayor Briley — stating that 71 percent of our members did not
believe the current crime prevention strategy in Nashville was working.

"This survey was completely ignored by city administrators."

Joey Garrison contributed to this report.

Reach Adam Tamburin at atamburin@tennessean.com or 615-726-5986 and on Twitter @tamburintweets.